System for heat treating continuous punched strip



Oct. 25, 1960 2,957,688 I SYSTEM FOR HEAT TREATING CONTINUOUS PUNCHED STRIP Filed May 29. 1957 H. c. LuEcKE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR; HARRY C. LUE CKE ATTYS.

Oct. 25, 1960 H. c. LUECKE 2,957,688

SYSTEM FOR HEAT TREATING CONTINUOUS PUNCHED STRIP Filed May 29, 1957 3 Shee FIELZP INVENTORZ HAR RY C. LUECKE BY ATTYS.

Oct. 25, 1960 H. c. LUECKE 2,957,688

SYSTEM FOR HEAT TREATING commuous PUNCHED STRIP Filed May 29. 1957 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR1 9 HARRY c. LUECKE BY W q Ma e/4W ATTYS.

United States Patent SYSTEM FOR HEAT TREATING CONTINUOUS PUNCHED STRIP Harry C. Luecke, Philadelphia, Pa., assignor to The Proctor-Silex Corporation, a corporation of Connecticut Filed May 29, 1957, Ser. No. 662,524

4 Claims. (Cl. 266--3) This invention relates to a system for continuous manufacture of continuous strip punched in repetitive pattern. More specifically, this invention relates to a system in which a continuous punched strip may be punched and suitably processed so that it is ready for its ultimate use.

Metallic wire cylinder clothing of the type generally associated with garment machine, worsted cards and synthetic cards employed in the textile field involves a number of manufacturing problems which have heretofore made it a step by step manufactured product with rigid inspection requirements each step of the way. This wire clothing has saw-teeth punched continuously along one edge over the length of the strip. The length of strip usually depends on the capacity of reels suitable for handling it, which for processing purposes can be considered practically infinite. To facilitate punching, relatively soft iron strip is used and later selectively hardened so that the tips which must resist wear are hard, but the back which must be coiled and formed in installing the wire onto the drum is left soft. Inthe prior art the punching and hardening steps have been separately accomplished. In the course of reeling and unreeling between the punching and hardening steps, it has been common for the teeth to hook onto one another from one part of the wire to the other resulting in distortion or breaking of the teeth. Moreover, in the prior art heat treatment of the wire to harden the tips of the teeth has been accomplished by passing the tips of the teeth through gas flames and then quenching the wire as a whole. This process frequently resulted in a variation of the hardness along the length of the wire and often resulted in a hardening of the wire across its cross section to some degree. 7 The present invention enables the manufacture from rolled strip or wire of a punched and selectively hardened metallic material of repetitive pattern. Together with the inspection device of Jack Levy covered in his patent application S.N. 662,521 of even date herewith entitled Means and Method for Detecting Imperfections in Continuous Materials and assigned to our common assignee, the present invention is capable of producing perfectly uniform high quality punched Wire clothing suitable for and relatively easily spirally installed on a drum. Moreover, this material may be stored on reels with much less danger of destruction of teeth since the teeth are sufliciently hardened to resist bending and breakage even if they should become entangled.

Specifically, the present invention is directed to a system for continuous manufacture of continuous strip punched in a repetitive pattern. The system has a strip supply means at one end of a strip path and a take-up means at the other end of the path with other elements of the system arranged along the path. These elements include a punch for punching teeth in the strip and a drive means which is associated with the punch to drive the strip intermittently between the strokes of the punch.

2,957,688 Patented Oct. 25, 1960 Closer to the take-up means is a continuous drive for driving the strip smoothly along the path. A lost-motion device is located between the intermittent and continuous drives and adapted to accommodate and dispose of slack in the strip resulting from the difference in motion of the two drives. The strip path of the continuously driven portion of the strip passes through a furnace and thereafter beneath a quenching nozzle. The quenching nozzle is connected to a supply of coolant which is adapted to direct the coolant against the teeth of the strip without quenching the base thereof. Thereafter, along the strip path means is provided for detecting the hardness of the strip.

The invention includes numerous detailed features which will be apparent by reference to the drawings showing a preferred embodiment of the invention wherein:

Fig. l is a schematic flow diagram representing the difierent processes which take place through the system of the present invention;

Fig. 2a is a side elevational view of the first part of the system or production line for manufacturing wire clothing;

Fig. 2b is the latter part of the production line;

Fig. 3 is a plan view from above showing the punch in action as it rises to punch teeth in the strip;

Fig. 4 is a view along the line, 44 of Fig. 2b showing the oven and its operation;

Fig. 5 is a view taken along line 5--5 of Fig. 2b showing the quenching nozzle in action; and

Fig. 6 is a schematic wiring diagram showing a simplified version of the one possible circuit arrangement of the electrical portion of the present invention.

Referring first to Fig. l, the steps taken in processing strip or wire through the system of the present invention are schematically illustrated. Strip 1i) which is being processed is fed along a strip path first between a punch 11 and an anvil 12 which enable the punching of teeth 13 or another continuous punched pattern as shown in Fig. 3. The strip is continued along tape path through an inspection device 14 such as that covered by the abovementioned invention of Jack Levy which effectively inspects the punched strip for defects in the tips or fillets and preferably is capable, upon determination of defects, of stopping the drive equipment 31 and 32, which keeps the tape 10 moving along its tape path. Next, the strip is moved through an. oven 15 and im-. mediately passed beneath a nozzle 16 which is positioned relative to strip path so that coolant 17 is directed against the teeth to cool and harden them without being directed against the back portion which remains in relatively soft annealed condition. Finally, the average hardness of the strip after quenching is measured by a permeability measuring coil 18 which detects departures from predetermined hardness tolerances indicating that quenching has affected too little or too much area.

Referring to Fig. 2a, one form of the system of the present invention is illustrated. As shown, the strip supply means is a reel or spool 20 carrying a coil of soft steel strip 21 ready for punching. The reel is supported on a spindle 22 held by arms 23 extending from a portion of support table 24.

The strip path of strip 10 first passes over a guide roll 25, which is rotatably mounted on table 2 4 and through alignment means 26 which is also supported on table 24. Next, the strip passes through the die set containing the die 12 relative to which punch 11 is moved by suitable crank linkage conneotions-27 and 28 to an eccentric drive shaft 29 which is supported in suitable bearing to be rotatable relative to the table 24 and which is: a belt or chain connected by connection means 30 to a drive motor 31 also on the table. After punching the strip is fed through means 14 for checking the punching to make sure it is satisfactory and to signal or shut down the system if it is not. Next, the strip passes between drive rollers 33 and 34 which are rotatably supported and urged together by a suitable drive mill frame 35 supported, in turn, on the table. Drive roller 34 is driven through suitable gear connections to a rotatably supported shaft which supports a ratchet 36. Ratchet 36 is moved by crank arms 37 and 38 also attached to shaft 29 to move the ratchet relative to pawl 39. Thus the same drive motor 31 is used to actuate the punch and to provide intermittent motion to the drive roller 34. By this, or a smilar arrangement, the punch 11 and the drive means are so synchronized that drive will occur only when the punch is not in process of punching. Thus, as the strip is fed along its path over guide roller 41 it has an intermittent movement.

Between guide roller 41 and continuous drive rollers 42 and 43 the strip is passed under dancer roller 44 which is preferably gravity biased and tends to keep a loop 45 in the strip under tension. Roller 44 is attached by a lever arm 46 to a shaft 47 about which it rotates. Shaft 47 is advantageously supported on an auxiliary supporting structure 48 relative to main supporting structure 49 which is fixed in permanent position to a floor, or otherwise fixed relative to support structure 24. Also on auxiliary support 48 are suitable limit switches (not shown) which connect pilot motor 51 to a power supply so that it is driven in opposite directions for opposite directions of rotation of lever 46 and roller 44 beyond a predetermined tolerance range. The pilot motor 51 adjusts the speed control which is connected to modify the speed of drive motor 52, and hence the drive rollers 42 and 43 between which the strip passes, in a way which will correct the position of the roller 44 to within the tolerance range. Rollers 42 and 43 are supported by bearings and urged together by a mill support 53 including suitable spring loading means.

The rollers 42 and 43 drive the strip at this smooth continuous but adjustable rate through the heat treating oven 15, as seen in Fig. 2b. The heat treating oven is composed of upper and lower parts 55 and 56, respectively, which are hinged by hinges 56a which permit opening about an axis parallel to the strip path. The oven parts are adapted to be separated to facilitate removal of strip from the oven. The oven is supported by suitable brackets on which are rotatably mounted wheels 57 which run on tracks 58 in response to a drive which will be described in more detail in connection with Fig. 4. The heating effect of the oven 15 is to anneal the strip at the required temperature for the desired degree of hardening of the teeth, which hardening is accomplished as the strip passes beneath nozzle 16 which is connected to a source of coolant by hose 60 through valve 61 at the end of line 62. Line 62 is connected preferably to a recirculatory system including refrigerating means in the support base 49. As seen in Fig. 5, the nozzle 16 directs a flow of coolant 17 only against the tips 13 of the strip 10. Thus, the tips are hardened while the continuous edge 64 is left annealed and soft for ease in forming the wire which will be required in coiling it onto a reel or winding it spirally onto a drum or carding cylinder, etc. In order to preserve precise alignment, suitable guide rollers 66, 67 are provided at opposite ends of the nozzle along the tape path and supported relative to the base 49 on a suitable support structure 68, which includes rollers 69 with a shoulder 69a for guiding the continuous edge of the strip. Support 68 also advantageously supports a collection trough 70 in which coolant 17 is collected and from which it is returned by gravity feed line 71 to the refrigeration unit in the base 49 to be recirculated by a suitable pump through feed line 62. The support structure 68, in turn, is supported relative to the base 49 on a suitable bracket 73. The nozzle is supported on a structure 74 which includes a height adjustment means 75 and a lateral positioning means 76 to change the position of the nozzle relative to the strip path across the support 68.

Next on the support base 49 is another set of drive rollers 78 and 79 supported in bearings which are supported and urged together by a mill support 80. The roller 79 may be driven by the same drive means as roller 42 through a chain drive or other suitable connection means between these two rollers.

The coil 18 is supported relative to the base 49 by support bracket 83 so that the strip path passes along its axis. The coil is of a well-known type suitable for measuring the permeability of the iron material passing through it. If the teeth have been hardened to a certain distance from their tips, the permeability will assume a limited range of values. Deviation from this limited range in one direction indicates that too much has been hardened and deviation in the other direction indicates not enough has been hardened. A deviation or error signal produced by the permeability detection means may be used to stop the operation of the device in the same way imperfections detected by the Levy scanner are used to stop the machine. Alternatively, a recording means of the graph type may be used to record permeability over the length of a particular wire being run.

From coil 18, the strip path passes over suitable guide means to the take-up means, a reel 85, which is supported on driven shaft 86 which, in turn, may be supported on a suitable stand 87. The reel is driven through motor 88 using a suitable belt 89 or other drive means. When collected on the reel, the wire 90 is ready for use and installation on drums of textile processing machines, etc.

In addition to the guide means, a suitable follower roller 92 is used to sense the diameter of the coil 90 and move link 93 relative to correction means 94 and correction means 94, in turn, regulates the speed of take-up motor 88 to decrease its speed as the diameter of the reel is increased in order to accommodate the wire at a near constant linear rate.

Also provided on opposite sides of the furnace, quenching means and permeability detecting means are suitable switches 95 and 96 which are provided with gravitybiased lever arms 97 and 98 having rollers 97a and 98a adapted to ride the top of the strip as it passes over roller pairs 99 and 100, respectively. Should the strip break, the rollers 97a and 98a would no longer be supported by the strip and movement of their respective lever arms 97 or 98 would actuate their switches 95 or 96, shutting down the system in a manner which would be described in connection with the simplified circuit diagram.

Referring briefly to Fig. 4, the furnace 15 is shown in the action of raising the hinged lid 55 from the base portion 56. :In Fig. 4, the different positions which the furnace assumes in being moved away from its operative position at the extreme right can also be seen. It will be noticed that the base portion is flat and capable of being moved beneath the strip without interference. The top portion, on the other hand, is notched at both ends in notches 101 to provide openings in the opposite ends of the furnace through which the strip 10 passes. The piston rod 103 of a fluid cylinder 104 is connected to base portion 56 of the furnace to move the furnace into and out of operative position. In order to avoid interference with the strip 10, it is necessary to raise the top portion 55 of the furnace about its hinge 56a, as the cylinder causes withdrawal of the furnace from the position in full lines at the extreme right to the position in dot-anddash lines at the extreme left. At both terminal positions, the furnace is closed in order to maintain its heat level. 'In the intermediate range, the furnace is opened no more than is necessary to clear the strip. The opening of the furnace is accomplished by providing a slidable arm 106 in suitable guides 107 on the bottom portion 56 of the furnace. The slide is connected by pin 108 to the top of the furnace 55 and its bottom is connected to a roller 109 by a suitable pin 110 permitting rotation of the roller. The rollers rides on a cam track 111 and, as the furnace is withdrawn from the position at the extreme right, the roller immediately rides up a slope in the cam track surface and thereby urges the slide 106 upwardly raising the top 55, as shown in the intermediate dot-and-dash drawing. Raisingthe top 55 about its hinge portion 56a is facilitated by the use of counterbalancing weights 113 on suitable supports at the back of the furnace. A suitable handle may also be provided for manually opening the furnace. f

Much of the wiring and the controls for the circuits, schematically illustrated in Fig. 6, is contained within the cabinets generally designated 115 in Fig. 2a. Details of the switches, pilot lights, etc, on this cambinet will be omitted sincethese elements are shown schematically in Fig. 6 and their purpose in functioning is clearer from this diagram.

Referringto Fig. 6, it will be observed that the circuit shown is highly schematic. As a practical matter in most power circuits, a three-phase system would probably be used. Multiple switching would be required and hold-in circuits for holding the various relays into position would be employed. In addition, separate start and stop switches would be employed instead of single-pole, single-throw switches, as illustrated.

The power supply is shown here as a single power line 120 which comes from one side of a generator 121, the other conductor is ground 122. Control of the various circuits is maintained through four relays the coils of which are 123, 124, 125 and 126. Relay 123 closes switch 128 when energized to complete a circuit through heating element 129 of the furnace 15. Relay 123 is energized when switches 130, 131 and 132 are closed so that it is connected between line 120 and ground. Switch 130 is a manual switch which may be opened to prevent the heating of the furnace. Switch 131 is a thermostatic switch which is opened and closed in response to the temperatures within the furnace in order to keep the furnace at an even temperature by deenergizing the heater element 129 when the furnace overheats. Switch 132 is a master switch which may be actuated by a clock timer 133 connected between the power line 120 and ground to start operation of the system automatically at certain times and to shut it ofl at other times. Switch 132 being the master switch of the system is also in series with all other relays 124, 125 and 126, as will hereinafter be described, and preferably may be opened manually, as well as automatically by the clock timer.

Relay 124 is energized when switch 135 is closed completing the circuit through relay 124 between power line 120 and line 136 which is in series with master switch 132 to ground. When switch 135 is closed, the pilot light 137 is lit. This light may be located on the panel board and labeled pump motor, since it controls the motor 138 for pumping coolant through the nozzle 16 and when it is lit relay 124 is energized and switch 139 is therefore closed.

When closed, switch 141 completes a circuit from line 120 through delay 125, take-up motor pilot light 142, line 166 and master switch 132 to ground. This, in turn, closes switch 143 which completes the power circuit through the take-up motor 88 which drives the take-up reel. The variable impedance 144 is merely intended to represent the variable speed nature of the take-up motor 88.

Energization of relay coil 126 causes the closing of switches 1'46, '147, 148 and 149. Switch 146 completes the circuit between power line 120 through punch-actuating motor 31 to ground; switch 147 completes the circuit through drive motor 52; switch 148 enables completion of a circuit through pilot motor 51 to ground; and switch 149 completes a circuit through a valve-actuating solenoid 6 151 which is intended to shift the valve-controlling fluid entrance to cylinder 104 to a position in which the oven 15 is moved to operative position.

Double-pole, double-throw switch 152 is intended to reverse the leads of pilot motor 51 in order to reverse that motor which acts upon means (not shown) to vary the speed of the drive motor 52. This switch is actuated in opposite direction by the position of dancer roller 44 and the switch need not be closed either way, so that the pilot motor will have no effect, when the dancer roller is within its proper range of tolerance. In practice, it is usually simpler to use two double-pole, single-throw switches to effect closing of contacts at opposite ends of the tolerance range of dancer roller 44.

The solenoid 151 is connected alternatively through selector switch 154 to a terminal which takes it through terminal 155 to ground or through a terminal 156 which leaves the circuit open so that no current can flow through the solenoid 151 whether the switch 149 is opened or closed, or through wire break switches 95 and 96 to ground. Usually in operation, switch 154 is connected through switches, 95 and 96 so that, if the strip breaks, the solenoid will be immediately deenergized, repositioning the control valve which permits the furnace to be returned to its inoperative position. If the switch 154 is closed to terminal 156, even if terminal 149 is closed, the solenoid 151 cannot be energized and the furnace will remain in its inoperative position. If switch 154 is moved to terminal 157 connecting it to ground then, even if the wire does break or is broken, the furnace will remain in operative position. This position is desirable, for example, in case it is necessary to test the operation of the furnace in operative position without the presence of the wire.

The relay coil 126 is normally energized from power line through a pilot light 159 through a manual switch 160 through the wire-break switches 95 and 96 through a manually-set, double-pole, double-throw switch 161 to a single-pole, double-throw manual switch 162, the automatic scanning control switch 163 controlled by scanner 14, through line 136, master switch 132 to ground. When the manually operated double-pole, double-throw switch 161 is in this position, the pilot light 165 will also be lit through a line 166 direct to the power line 120. The double-pole, double-throw switch 161 may be set in its alternative position to by-pass the wire-break switches 95 and 96 for the same reasons that selector switch 154 is used to by-pass these switches. Manual switch 162 may also be used to by-pass both of these switches and the manual switch 160. Switch 163, as previously explained, is used to shut down the punch, the drive and the pilot motors, as well as withdrawing the furnace in the event of imperfection in the strip, as detected by the scanner 14. When the coil 126 is energized, pilot light 159 is on, indicating that the punch, drive and pilot motors are operating and the furnace is in operative position.

From the above, it will be seen that using a combina tion of relatively easily available standard elements, a system for continuously producing continuous wire clothing for textile processing machines is provided. Such a system produces higher quality products than have previously been available while, at the same time, being capable of automatic or semi-automatic operation.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that modifications in the system described may be made within the scope of the claims, and all such modifications are intended to be within the scope and spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A system for continuous manufacture of continuous strip punched in repetitive pattern comprising a strip supply means from which metallic strip may be drawn, take-up means for collecting the processed strip, a strip path intermediate the supply and take-up means along which the strip is moved, a punch for punching the repetitive pattern in the strip as it moves along said strip path, a drive means associated with the punch to drive the strip intermittently between the strokes of the punch, a continuous drive adapted to act upon the strip to move it at essentially constant speed along the strip path, a. lost motion device between the intermittent drive and the continuous drive adapted to accommodate and dispose of slack in the strip, an oven for heat treating the strip, which oven is adapted to be removed from the strip path when said strip breaks or the system stops, said oven being composed of top and bottom portions hingedly secured at edges parallel to the strip path and having openings in the ends of the top through which the strip passes when in one position and being transversely movable to a position completely removed from the strip path, and means for lifting the upper portion of the oven in the course of its movement from one position to the other so that the strip path may be avoided.

2. The system of claim 1 in which the oven is mounted on tracks and is provided with an additional cam track which cooperates with a cam follower connected to a mechanism adapted to lift the upper portion of the oven during the course of the movement of said oven from said one to said other positions thereof.

3. The system of claim 1 in which a quenching nozzle connected to a supply of coolant directs the coolant against the repetitive pattern to quench the portion of the strip containing said repetitive pattern without quenching the remaining portion of the strip.

4. The system of claim 3 in which means are provided for detecting the hardness of the strip.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,817,902 Schumacher Aug. 4, 1931 2,059,976 Stargardter Nov. 3, 1936 2,143,672 Archibald Jan. 10, 1939 2,274,072 Kersting Feb. 24, 1942 2,278,136 Otis et a1 Mar. 31, 1942 2,309,343 Farrow Jan. 26, 1943 2,363,540 McVey Nov. 28, 1944 2,510,462 Christenson June 6, 1950 2,569,054 Herzog Sept. 25, 1951 2,617,854 Valkenburg Nov. 11, 1952 2,730,233 Coleman et al Jan. 10, 1956 2,730,348 Rendel Jan. 10, 1956 2,742,274 Edvar Apr. 17, 1956 

